Ending up the season with the right running backs is critical for fantasy success. Buthow to get there? The key is to follow each team’s depth chart. Often a non-starterwill emerge as a fantasy hero after the lead man goes down. You want that guy! To increase your odds, learn about every RB on the depth charts.

It seems like all we hear about these days is Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck, Tom Brady and Russell Wilson. Bla-bla-bla….But we give you four other NFL offensive players who are rated as longshots but have a decent chance to win the award:

Adrian Peterson, Running Back, Minnesota Vikings at 8-1:

A lot of people are overlooking Adrian Peterson due to his off field issues. They are forgetting that he is one of the most talented running backs of all time!

The Vikings lost four of nine games last season by a combined eight points! With Peterson now back in the fold and additions on both sides of the ball, Minnesota can do some serious damage. At age 30 he has nearly 2,300 total touches under his belt. However, he’s had an entire season to rest! He’s averaged nearly 1,700 total yards and 13 touchdowns in his first seven NFL seasons. If he performs similarly he could easily walk off with the MVP trophy!

Tony Romo, Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys at 15-1:

Tony Romo can be a very effective and dangerous quarterback. Last season with the assistance of Demarco Murray , Dez Bryant and a strong offensive line he led the Dallas Cowboys to a 12-4 record. He led the league with a 69.9 completion percentage and a 113.2 quarterback rating. He threw for over 3,700 yards with 34 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.

If Dallas and Romo have another great season, he will have arrived into the elite category and will surely be a hot MVP candidate.

Antonio Brown, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers at 15-1:

By now everybody recognizes the extraordinary productivity of Antonio Brown. If anybody is a potential dark horse candidate for the MVP award it is surely him. Last year’s season was simply phenomenal.His 129 receptions were second-most in league history. The 1,698 receiving yards Brown put up were sixth in league history. What if he improves on these numbers? How could voters ignore him as they did last year?

Philip Rivers, Quarterback, San Diego Chargers at 20-1:

OMG! Phillip Rivers seems to get better with age!

He put up nearly 4,300 yards with 31 touchdowns last year. Unfortunately the Chargers lacked a running game. They ranked 31st in the NFL in yards per rush at 3.3 and 30th at 80.4 yards per game. Hopefully, now that the Chargers added Melvin Gordon in the first round of the 2015 NFL draft, Rivers should have more support on the ground. Throughout history the elite quarterbacks have typically had such a solid running option to go to. San Diego is loaded in the passing game and has one of the most underrated offensive lines in the NFL. If San Diego wins the AFC West over Peyton Manning’s Broncos don’t be surprised if Rivers is getting lots of MVP love!

Peyton Manning, Den, QBADP (From Fantasy Football Calculator): 38.6 (QB3) If I’m going to use my late-third or early-fourth round pick on a QB (the average price tag for Peyton), it’s not going to be on a 39-year-old with a recent history of quad and neck injuries, the former being used as the excuse for an ugly performance stretch over the final five weeks of ’14 (though the injury occurred at the mid-way point of that slide) . And, if the guy is also losing a Red Zone Hoover like Julius Thomas, a velcro-handed chain mover like Wes Welker and three starting offensive linemen from last season, then I’m definitely going to look a different direction. And let’s not forget that we also have to take into account a change at head coach (Gary Kubiak), which also means a change in offensive philosophy, one that should be decidedly more ground heavy if history tells us anything. If the early rounds are about minimizing risks, then avoiding Elder Manning as his career nears the cliff’s edge is the prudent course of action. (Brandon Funston)

Arian Foster, Hou, RBADP: 8.4 (RB6)Every featured back in the NFL comes with risk – it’s tackle football, after all – but I see more warning signs with Foster than the ordinary player. He’ll turn 29 right before the season, and there’s a fair amount of tread on the tires – he’s missed 14 games over the last four years, battling a laundry list of physical problems (last year it was hamstring, knee, hip and groin injuries). Only Marshawn Lynch has more rushing attempts than Foster over the past five years (a 46-carry edge), and consider Lynch has played in 13 more games than Foster. Houston’s bell cow takes on a lot of contact at 6-feet-0, 232 pounds, and I’d like to be more floor driven with my early picks, especially at the running back position. (Scott Pianowski

Kelvin Benjamin, Car, WRADP: 36.1 (WR15) Last year, the scintillating performances of Odell Beckham, Mike Evans, Jordan Matthews and Benjamin left the fantasy community thirsting for more. Their break out rookie campaigns, unsurprisingly, have raised expectations to near unprofitable levels. However, of all the second-year targets likely to experience a sophomore slump, Benjamin tops the list. To be fair, he’s a preeminent red-zone threat. Tight end-like at 6-foot-5, 240 pounds and blessed with plus leaping ability, he’s a menace near the goal-line. In one more game he enticed the same number of red-zone targets (17) as Rob Gronkowski. He should again be a preferred weapon of Cam Newton, but red flags are flapping in the wind. Benjamin missed 10-of-14 summer practices due to hamstring problems which caused him to pack on 10 pounds of unnecessary weight. The wideout said recently he’s already shed the extra baggage and is healed, but I have my doubts. Hammies can flare up at a moment’s notice. Just ask the dude who owned Miles Austin a while back. Couple that with adjustments defenses are bound to make, Carolina’s conservative approach and Devin Funchess increasing competition for targets and it’s plain to see the increased downfall probability. At best, you’re hoping for a repeat of 2014 (73-1008-9). At his WR15 price, the margin simply isn’t there. (Brad Evans)

Jonathan Stewart, Car, RBADP: 43.4 (RB21) Coming off his most productive year since 2011, Stewart is going all Lisa Kudrow and attempting to make a fantasy comeback. With DeAngelo Williams soon to be suiting up for the Steelers, Stewart has been loosed from RBBC bondage and will assume Carolina’s workhorse duties. His ADP has soared accordingly. However, this volume that everyone is predicting is far from guaranteed. Head Coach Ron Rivera has never leaned on a single back. Not even in the Divisional Round of the playoffs where Mike Tolbert was tapped over Stewart on a crucial third down play. Speaking of Tolbert, the human bowling ball is back to full health and ready to vulture the end zone. And he’s not the only one. Fozzy Whitaker and rookie Cameron Artis-Payne are also in the mix. Still, the biggest threat to Stewart’s production is his quarterback. Cam Newton rushed the red zone twelve times and scored three touchdowns in 2014. J-Stew had nineteen attempts from the goal-line, but only managed two scores. Throw in Stewart’s obvious durability concerns and his current price tag seems a bit bloated, especially in standard scoring formats which are so touchdown dependent. (Liz Loza)

Travis Kelce, KC, TEADP: 54.8 (TE3) I challenge you to go find a fantasy analyst — anyone, anywhere — who isn’t extremely bullish on Kelce this season. Go ahead, take a minute to search. We’ll wait. Nothing, right? It’s amazing, really. We have never agreed on anything the way we seem to agree on the greatness of Kelce. Kansas City’s tight end is carrying a fifth round ADP these days, and I’ve seen him selected much earlier than that — and everyone who picks the guy takes an immediate victory lap in draft chat. While I have plenty of respect for Kelce’s talent (and we’re all impressed at his recovery from microfracture), I really hate these situations where we price a player at a level where he needs to make a significant value leap. Let’s not pretend the team context in KC so great; this team’s passing offense ranked No. 29 last season and No. 24 the year before. When the Chiefs visit the red-zone, Jamaal Charles is basically the entire show. If you’re counting on Alex Smith boosting the value of any member of his receiving corps, well, I mean … c’mon. We’re talking about a hyper-conservative quarterback and a low-yield passing game. KC only put the ball in the air 493 times last season, finishing with only 18 touchdown passes. No need to pay a premium price to get a share in this passing game. I’ll take Zach Ertz in the eighth or Josh Hill in the eleventh, thank you very much. Kelce is all yours. (Andy Behrens)

Andre Ellington, Ari, RBADP: 45.0 (RB22) Andre Ellington got 5.5 YPC during his rookie campaign, but he was one of the biggest busts as a sophomore last season, when that number dropped to 3.3. Pro Football Focus graded him as the No. 56 runner out of 57 qualified backs, as Ellington got just 1.8 YPC after contact, which was the second lowest in the NFL. He played hurt, which undoubtedly contributed to his lackluster season, but there’s reason to be concerned about the 5-9 back’s durability moving forward, which is evidenced by the Cardinals spending a third round draft pick on David Johnson. Moreover, did you realize he’s already 26 years old? LeSean McCoy just turned 27 two weeks ago. Given his health risk and coming off last year’s truly dismal performance, I can’t see drafting Ellington as a top-25 fantasy back in 2015. (Dalton Del Don)

According to fantasy.usatoday.com:

Do you trust Andre Ellington to stay healthy or handle carries between-the-tackles on a regular basis? Me neither. Especially not at his 40.9 overall ADP (RB 18).

Johnson (6-1, 224 pounds) possesses the better profile for full-time work and inside-the-20 chances. This should be close to an even split in touches, and in this case, it’s best to favor the one who’d pull into the lead for touchdown potential.

He could do all the things blind believers thought Ellington could last year — and he’ll offer that upside at a fraction of the price.

Sanders is coming off a beast period and also has a lots of skill. Still, he’s being ranked right around the WR15 port. My trouble below is that Peyton Manning is visibly decreasing as well as the Broncos have actually made it clear they’re transitioning to an even more run oriented infraction this period. Of all the people on this team, Sanders has the greatest prospective to make me look dumb. Nonetheless, I required him to see a significant autumn in dream production in 2015. In fact I pretty much anticipate every person on the Denver crime to take a huge step back.

RB2 Jonathan Stewart , Carolina Panthers

Stewart is basically right there with Spiller as a low-end RB2 in 10-team leagues. First and foremost, he hasn’t already remained healthy and balanced in four years. Over the previous three periods he’s missed out on 20 games. He hasn’t hurried for 810 yards or 5 TDs considering that 2009. What worldwide is making people think that this person is about to make some sort of significant resurgence? It’s not like he has a ton of PPR worth either; he only caught greater than 25 passes as soon as in his whole job. If you want to prepare a Panthers’ running back, get hold of Cameron Artis-Payne concerning 90 choices later on. He’s a better value pick.

WR2 Sammy Watkins , Buffalo Expenses

Watkins remains in a truly bad situation this period. Drafting him as a mid-level WR2 could be a catastrophe. Not simply is he going over offseason hip surgical treatment however his group isn’t really doing him any kind of supports. The Bills got LeSean McCoy and also Rex Ryan has made it clear they wish to run the round concerning 40 times a game, and also knowing Ryan, that’s possibly just a mild exaggeration.

On the off opportunity the Bills do decide to throw the ball, their quarterbacks could be the worst in the league. Matt Cassel is the expected starter and also his weaknesses reduce the effects of Watkin’s best toughness. If E.J. Manuel wins the task, he might have a hard time to get Watkins the round deep or brief. With so couple of passes to walk around, Buffalo has a bunch of mouths to feed. They added Percy Harvin , Charles Clay and McCoy, while F-Jax as well as Robert Forest will likely still play a considerable part. Points don’t look good for Watkins or any one of the Expenses’ receivers.

WR3 Amari Cooper , Oakland Raiders

I truly like Cooper and also assume he’ll be a superstar in the future. The Raiders merely aren’t there yet. If you could possibly get him as a flex option, I enjoy it. Nonetheless, he’s being placed as a WR3 and prepared as a WR2. That’s merely way excessive. Also, as long as I trust my capability to review ability, that the Raiders selected him does startle me a bit. Derek Carr and also Cooper will grow into a strong duo, I just assume it’s going to take a while for the youthful pair to establish.

TE1 Josh Hill , New Orleans Saints

Zach Ertz scares me also but Hillside perplexes me a lot more. He’s being drafted as a TE1. Do individuals truly believe that he could simply pointer in and also do exactly what Jimmy Graham did? Very few TEs in the history of the organization have installed the numbers Graham has. Not only that, Drew Brees is decreasing and also the Saints are one more group transitioning to a run-heavy crime. Hill is totally unverified, and also it’s extremely risky to simply prepare him as your leading TE and anticipate him to make also remotely close Graham. If you want to roll the dice on a man with 20 occupation functions as your starter, you’re a larger risk taker than me.

QB1 Tony Romo , Dallas Cowboys

Romo is usually being drafted and ranked as a low-end QB1 in 12-team organizations. There are a variety of problems I have with this. One, Romo is coming off an MVP caliber period and also only completed 2014 as the No. 11 dream quarterback. It’s unlikely he has a much better period in 2015 than he did last year. He lost DeMarco Murray , which took a ton of pressure off Romo, as well as the Cowboys made minimal effort to replace him. The team still intends to release a solid run strike with a lackluster committee.

Additionally, Dez Bryant is intimidating to sit out normal season games and at finest will most likely be disgruntled. His most trusted target Jason Witten will be one more year older and also will likely continue to decline at 33. In addition to all that, Romo is still a 35-year-old quarterback with a history of severe back problems. Pass on Romo this period, he’s unworthy the price.

RB1 C.J. Spiller , New Orleans Saints

He is being prepared as a low-end RB2 as well as is being rated as the RB20 generally. Spiller has actually been nothing but unsatisfactory in spite of a couple of huge video games in one period 3 years ago. He couldn’t vanquish Fred Jackson in Buffalo and also has actually struggled to remain healthy. Individuals are projecting him to be some kind of PPR star, nonetheless, individuals fall short to realize that he’s not a great pass-catcher. His brightest minutes began brings when he was able to get around the edge. He is as well frail to be knocked between the deals with and struggles as a receiver. His hands are subpar and his path running is even worse. Do not compose Spiller in hopes of getting an additional Darren Sproles . All you’ll be obtaining is an additional C.J. Spiller .

This weekend, it’s generally Christmas for millions of professional football fans in America.

That’s due to the fact that Sunday marks the opening day for yet another season of NFL football. The 2014-15 campaign in fact began on Thursday, when the protecting champ Seahawks crushed Green Bay in front of another raucous crowd in Seattle. The 30 other groups will make their debut tomorrow.

Is Peyton Manning going to play like he’s 25 years old once again? Can Johnny Football live up to the hype?

You’ll also discover lots of new technology on the field this season, as the NFL highlighted on Wednesday in Seattle. Thanks to a collaboration it inked with Microsoft in May 2013, NFL players and coaches will be making use of Microsoft’s Surface tablet on the sidelines between possessions. Meant to change the standard black-and-white printed documents, the device will certainly offer photos of recent plays that assist players and coaches figure out what was going on in previous possessions.

Some gamers will certainly likewise wear shoulder pads with RFID tags inside their shoulder pads, which will allow the NFL to tape-record real-time position information and info connected to acceleration, speed, paths, and overall range run.

There’s likewise cool technology off the field that fans can benefit from, from apps to streaming video game feeds to Twitter. We’ve rounded up some football-related tech devices and apps that may assist strengthen your NFL seeing experience this season. Apps The NFL Mobile app. The NFL Mobile app.

There are a number of NFL-related apps in the marketplace, and some are actually worth pointing out. One is a brand-new app from the NFL called NFL Now, which is largely a video hub for all things NFL. Readily available as a complimentary or paid app, NFL Now features instantaneous highlights, behind-the-scenes content, historic NFL Films video, and a lot more.

“There’s never ever been a much deeper opportunity for you to obtain into our content and to our video, and to experience it the method you wish to experience it, the method you want to do it, when you wish to do it, and on whatever platform you’re on,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stated at an occasion in Seattle on Wednesday. “We’re delighted about that.”.

The NFL likewise has NFL Mobile, which is great for capturing up on the most up to date highlights, information, statistics, and standings. ESPN ScoreCenter is likewise another excellent one for keeping up with ratings and information. In addition, Microsoft has a good NFL App for the Xbox One and Windows 8. Other favorites consist of Bleacher Report’s Team Stream, Fanzo, Yahoo Sports, and Fox Sports Mobile.

For the fantasy football players, ESPN, Yahoo, NFL.com, and CBSSports.com provide strong apps that permit users to fine-tine their lineups and inspect the current stats. Streaming games. NFL Sunday TIcket. NFL Sunday TIcket.

If you do not have access to a TELEVISION but can get online, there are a handful of means to see NFL games.

If you’re ready to pony up some dollars, NFL Sunday Ticket is your finest alternative. For $330, the DirectTV program lets you stream every out-of-market game to your mobile gadgets.

There’s Verizon, which is now enabling its “More Everything” customers to enjoy live NFL video games from their mobile gadgets without paying a $5 per month fee that was eliminated this year. Verizon’s NFL Mobile likewise includes access to the NFL Network.

Meanwhile, FOX revealed on Wednesday that it will certainly stream 101 games– 97 in the routine season, 4 in the playoffs– this year by means of its Fox Sports Go app. However, audiences will certainly require a cable television subscription to specific cable services and games will certainly likewise be restricted to those that are in your market. Fans will also not be able to stream video games on smart phones due to league restrictions, however laptop computers and tablets are great to go. NBC livestreams its Sunday Night games. NBC livestreams its Sunday Night games.

Every Sunday night, NBC will be streaming its regular video game online for complimentary and does not require a cable subscription. You can have a look at that feed here.

For Monday Night Football, fans can see the ESPN stream right here, but will need a cable television subscription.

If you occur to miss a live broadcast, the NFL has a way to stream already-played games with its Game Rewind program. It’ll cost you $70 to stream each video game this season– consisting of playoffs and the Super Bowl– or you can pay $30 for access to simply one team’s replays.

There are a few other alternatives, specifically for those that don’t have cable. You can try something like Aereo, which charges a small charge to stream live TV.

There’s NFL Game Pass, which lets audiences from outside the U.S. and Canada stream every video game in exchange for a subscription cost. If you’re going to pay for a streaming service, I ‘d recommend simply going with Sunday Ticket. Twitter lists.

twitter-bird-white-on-blueTwitter lists are a terrific means to follow a pre-selected group of Twitter accounts, and may end up being more popular with Twitter potentially curating user timelines in the near future.

For example, ESPN has a decent NFL-specific list right here. If you’re interested in the Seahawks, I assemble this list right here that can keep you updated with everything connected to the safeguarding Super Bowl champs. You can likewise produce your own Twitter lists customized to your specific NFL interests. Visit your Lists page to produce a brand-new group.

Earlier this week, Sporting News assembled a nice “must-follow on Twitter” group right here, and Mashable did something comparable here. Bleacher Report likewise has a great round-up of NFL sportswriters to follow right here. Purchasing tickets.

There’s nothing like in fact being at an NFL video game and fans have a variety of resources online to find bargains on tickets– particularly if you’re ready to wait until the last 2nd to buy. There are the popular ones– NFL Ticket Exchange, StubHub, Craigslist– however lesser-known options include SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, Cheap Tickets, RazorGator, and TickPick.

In addition, there are more recent apps like Rukkus and Gametime where you could discover a sweet bargain.

One is a new app from the NFL called NFL Now, which is mainly a video hub for all things NFL. Available as a complimentary or paid app, NFL Now showcases instant highlights, behind-the-scenes content, historic NFL Films footage, and much more.

The NFL also has NFL Mobile, which is terrific for capturing up on the latest highlights, news, data, and standings. In addition, Microsoft has a good NFL App for the Xbox One and Windows 8. There’s NFL Game Pass, which lets viewers from outside the U.S. and Canada stream every video game in exchange for a subscription charge.